Wenhaston is a village situated to the south of the River Blyth in northeastern

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...

, England. In 2018 it had an estimated population of 563.

History

Roman coins, pottery and building materials unearthed in local fields indicate the existence of a settlement at Wenhaston from the first century AD, and indeed this was probably a market of some importance between 80 and 350 AD. The first written record of its existence is to be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, when it was noted that the village of ''Wenadestuna'' possessed a mill, a church and woodland sufficient to feed 16 hogs. The place-name ''Wenhaston'' means 'Wynhaeth's town'.

Eilert Ekwall Bror Oscar Eilert Ekwall (born 8 January 1877 in Vallsjö (now in Sävsjö, Jönköpings län), Sweden, died 23 November 1964 in Lund, Skåne län, Sweden), known as Eilert Ekwall, was Professor of English at Sweden's Lund University from 1909 to ...

, ''The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-names'', p.506. Wenhaston Last Judgement

The village's greatest historical treasure is undoubtedly the Wenhaston Doom, a sixteenth-century (pre- Reformation) panel painting depicting the Last Judgement. This rare work of art was discovered during restoration work in 1892, hidden under whitewash on the wooden tympanum taken down from above the chancel arch. Today, the local community and economy of Wenhaston continues to benefit from its proximity to the Suffolk Heritage Coast and the flourishing resort town of Southwold. Wenhaston won the

Suffolk Coastal Suffolk Coastal was a local government district in Suffolk, England. Its council was based in Melton, having moved from neighbouring Woodbridge in 2017. Other towns include Felixstowe, Framlingham, Leiston, Aldeburgh, and Saxmundham. The ...

Village of the Year 2004 competition, and came second in the Suffolk County competition.

Economy

There is a thriving pig farm industry in the fields between Wenhaston and Blythburgh.

Geography

Wenhaston is closely adjoined by the village of Blackheath, which has for years been considered a part of Wenhaston, bringing the population up to 1000 or more. Blythburgh village is around 2 miles from Wenhaston and around a 10- to 15-minute bicycle ride from Wenhaston. With Mells it forms the civil parish of

Wenhaston with Mells Hamlet Wenhaston with Mells Hamlet is a civil parish in the English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for ...

Transport

Wenhaston had a railway station on the

Southwold Railway The Southwold Railway was a narrow gauge railway line between Halesworth and Southwold in the English county of Suffolk. long, it was narrow gauge. It opened in 1879 and closed in 1929. Intermediate stations were at Wenhaston, Blythburgh ...

but this closed, with the rest of the line, on 11 April 1929. Wenhaston has been connected to Halesworth and Southwold by bus services in the past years with routes being traced to eastern counties omnibus. Presently in 2022 the First Bus 99A serves Wenhaston all year around.

References

External links

Villages in Suffolk Suffolk Coastal {{Suffolk-geo-stub